The unpredictability of biological threats, from novel pathogens to escalating outbreak cycles, has made flexible, adaptable vaccine platform technologies a cornerstone of national health security strategy. Organizations with differentiated, platform-based vaccine technologies now have an early opportunity to shape a major federal research and development program before its formal solicitation opens.
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), through the Rapid Response Partnership Vehicle (RRPV) consortium, has released a Draft Request for Project Proposals (RPP) for its New Vaccine Platforms (NVP) Program. This is a pre-solicitation advance notice, not a formal funding opportunity, designed to give prospective offerors time to prepare, team, and provide feedback.
Up to approximately $160 million in initial U.S. government funding is anticipated, with up to six awards expected for the initial manufacturing and nonclinical demonstration phase. A period of performance of up to ten years from award is anticipated, with work expected to begin in FY2027.
The NVP Program addresses a persistent gap in U.S. medical countermeasure (MCM) preparedness: the need for versatile vaccine platforms that can be rapidly pivoted to address unknown or emerging threats. Current MCM portfolios are often optimized for known pathogens, leaving limited infrastructure for rapid response to novel health security incidents. By investing in adaptable platform technologies that span multiple pathogen families, BARDA aims to reduce development timelines and manufacturing bottlenecks during future public health emergencies.
Program Scope and Structure
The NVP Program will fund capability demonstrations across emerging infectious disease targets drawn from Public Health Emergency Medical Countermeasures Enterprise (PHEMCE) priority biological threats. Offerors must propose work against at least two EID targets from the following options, categorized by fusion protein class:
- Class I glycoprotein viruses: Lassa virus; Nipah virus
- Class II envelope protein viruses: Chikungunya virus; West Nile virus
The program is structured around staged capability demonstrations (CDs):
- CD-1 (Manufacturing Demonstration): Process development, chemistry, manufacturing, and controls (CMC) development, and production of clinical trial material to enable Phase 1 trials.
- CD-2 (Nonclinical Demonstration): Nonclinical safety studies, immunogenicity and efficacy data, and development of a clinical and regulatory plan.
- CD-3 (Phase 1 Clinical Demonstration, optional): Planning and execution of a Phase 1 clinical trial under a U.S. FDA Investigational New Drug (IND) application.
- CD-4 (Phase 2 Clinical Demonstration, optional): Manufacturing of cGMP clinical trial material and execution of a Phase 2 safety and immunogenicity trial.
RRPV will host a proposers conference and teaming event, tentatively scheduled for September 28, 2026. Details will be posted to the RRPV website.
Sources and further reading:
Draft RPP: New Vaccine Platforms (NVP) – Rapid Response Partnership Vehicle (RRPV)
This article was researched and sourced by Global Biodefense editors and reported with Claude AI assistance for drafting and editing.